The $95,000 Gamble: Civil Resolution Tribunal Lessons and Residential Tenancy Mansion Dispute

This week on Legally Speaking with Michael Mulligan: In 1999 the Supreme Court of Canada, in a case called Gladue, set out principles to be considered when indigenous people are involved in the criminal justice system. Judges were directed to consider all available sanctions other than imprisonment and to pay particular attention to the circumstances of aboriginal offenders. Despite the admonishments from the Supreme Court of Canada, the overrepresentation of aboriginal people in jail ...

8 Feb 202121min

This week on Legally Speaking with Michael Mulligan: Google has agreed to settle a Canadian Class Action based on an alleged breach of privacy arising from the collection and transmission of Android smartphone data. The data in question consists of the identification number or code of the cell towers used to connect Android phones. The Cell ID Data would identify the Android phone by unit serial number and could if considered alongside significant additional data obtained from other sou...

24 Jan 202121min

This week on Legally Speaking with Michael Mulligan: A BC Supreme Court Judge describes the BC COVID-19 public health orders as “fraught with inconsistency and ambiguity” and that it’s “not surprising that reasonable people can reasonably disagree about their interpretation and application in any given circumstance.” This case is one of many that have arisen where separated parents disagree about the interpretation of the orders and how they should be applied in the context of children spendi...

8 Jan 202121min

This week on Legally Speaking with Michael Mulligan: The Supreme Court of Canada has granted the Crown leave to appeal a BC Supreme Court decision that found a new law that required people accused of various sexual offences to provide advance notice of records they wish to rely on to the complaint and Crown to be unconstitutional. The law in question was passed following the Jian Ghomeshi case where the complainant’s credibility was undermined by email messages, they had sent that contr...

31 Dec 202023min

This week on Legally Speaking with Michael Mulligan: Provisions of the British Columbia Public Health Act allow for the enforcement of public health orders by means other than the imposition of fines. If someone is refusing to comply with an order to remain in quarantine or isolation, a judge can issue a warrant for their arrest and to require that they remain detained in a location and on conditions determined by the judge. When someone is arrested pursuant to such an order there is pr...

24 Dec 202022min

Rather than using collection agencies to collect COVID-19 related fines, the province of BC shouldn’t be sending $1,000 COVID-19 benefits to people who have outstanding fines for breaching orders of the Provincial Health Officer. As the payment are gratuitous, they could simply be withheld to pay outstanding fines for breaching orders made pursuant to the Public Health Act. The idea that someone who has received a fine for having a house party during the COVID-19 pandemic would re...

17 Dec 202022min

Renowned constitutional lawyer Joe Arvay passed away unexpectedly at the age of 71. Over the course of a remarkable career focused on public interest constitutional litigation he had a profound impact on the lives of many people. A few of the many cases he was involved with are discussed on the show, ranging from the Little Sisters bookstore case, that dealt with freedom of expression and equality rights to one of his most recent cases involving civil forfeiture of property that might b...

13 Dec 202023min

Mr. Big investigations involve tricking a suspect into believing they are being recruited into a fictitious criminal organization. Often a large number of undercover RCMP officers are involved. Typically, the undercover police officers will spend months having the suspect perform tasks for the fictitious criminal organization, paying them to do so. Eventually, the suspect will be introduced to the fictitious boss of the fictitious criminal organization who will tell the suspect that they need...

7 Dec 202022min